The Grand Valley State men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams kicked off the beginning of the 2017-18 season on the road against the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Saturday, Oct. 14.

The Laker men’s team picked up a convincing 141-102 victory, winning 10 events in the dual. The 200-meter medley relay team of Harry Shalamon, Marius Mikalauskas, Oscar Saura and J.D. Ham picked up the first victory for GVSU with a winning time of 1:33.91. Saura, a freshman from Barcelona, Spain, picked up two more victories in the 200-meter freestyle (1:43.04) and 200-meter butterfly (1:52.82), the first victories of his collegiate career.

Other Laker men’s victories came from Ahmed Nabih in the 400-meter individual medley (4:11.41) and Mikalauskas in the 200-meter breaststroke (2:06.26). Winning in the diving category was Jared Gregory, who won the 1-meter (271.87) and 3-meter (281.09) events to round out GVSU’s victories.

For the women’s swim and dive team, Caroline Brereton won the 1,000-meter freestyle with a time of 10:42.48. The other winner for the women’s swimming team was senior Sam Postmus, who won the 400-meter individual medley with a time of 4:31.76. In the diving category, Mikayla Karasek finished first on the 3-meter board with a score of 244.50.

GVSU volleyball’s Staci Brower earns GLIAC honors

After her dominant play during the Laker’s 2-1 record at the 2017 Midwest Region Crossover Tournament Friday, Oct. 13, and Saturday, Oct. 14, junior Staci Brower was named the GLIAC South Division Player of the Week, per a press release Monday, Oct. 16.

During the weekend tournament, Brower collected 25 kills, six service aces and a successful .329 hitting percentage. Brower’s best weekend performance came during GVSU’s 3-1 victory over Indianapolis, where she posted a team-high 16 kills and .500 hitting percentage.

This is the second time this season Brower has been honored as player of the week, earning the GLIAC nod during the week of Monday, Sept. 18.

The Lakers and the hard-hitting Brower will finally have a weekend series at home against Lake Superior State Friday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. and Saginaw Valley State Saturday, Oct. 21, at 4 p.m. in the GVSU Fieldhouse Arena.

Football watch party at Lubbers Stadium

As the Grand Valley State football team heads over to Big Rapids, Michigan, to take on the Ferris State Bulldogs, GVSU Athletics has announced they will host a “GVSU Football Watch Party” for those who aren’t willing to make the road trip Saturday, Oct. 21, at 1 p.m.

The first 1,000 GVSU students to attend will receive a free “GV” drawstring bag courtesy of The Lodge Student Living.

The event is free to the public for those who want to watch the game on the largest video board in NCAA Division II athletics and the third largest in the state of Michigan. Concessions will be served, but no food or drink will be allowed on the field. Only blankets and pillows will be allowed on the game’s field surface.